Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1887-07-10
LUCK, SUPERSTITION.
NERADIcABLg IDEAS THAT INFLUENCE
MEMS ACTIONS.
True Explanation Of tie Meaning Of an Itching
Palm-BsIsf in Lucky and Unlneky
N~umbsH-The Ratsial Pin.
hInM Eblame

Chicago Tribune.
"a black cat came to my house this
morning" said q well-known gambler 70
a friend the other day, ''xnd Pm bound to
make a win, sure"
You're in great luck, and Pm glad Of
it. That internal Shorty came behind my
chair the other day and hooded me, and
I'm gone broke"
Such is the kind of talk that one hears
constantly in gambling circles For In
credulity and superstition your thorough
gamblers exceed all other men. They be
lieye in lucky and unlucky days, in lucky
and unlucky number, in lucky and unlucky
clothes, and every chance or passing event
Is supposed in some way to influence their
fortune al cards. JEFF Hawkins had n lucky
mouse, Pat Sheedy had 4 lucky suit OF
clothes, others have lucky hats, or shoes,
or charms of some kind. Some believe
they cannot win if certain people are in
the room where they are playing. Ordi-
narily il ought to be inferred that those
who are most familiar with the actual re-
suits of q long series of chance games
would form the most correct views respect
ing them, and would be treest from super
stition as to chance or luck; but the reverse
is the case, and when superstition Is finally
driven headlong from the world it will IND
its last ditch and die the hardest in the
mind of the gambler.
But however black cats and hoOdoos may
influence the fortune of gamblers, the
superstitions of people generally are sin
gularly curious and seem so deeply rooted
as to be ineradicable. Even the most in
telligent and educated persons have one or
more pet superstitiOus, which they men,
ton only Il laugh at, but still iondly
cherish. 1t is in TACT q feature OF our
social life not altogether unworthy OF
study. From the cradle to the grave We
are beset on all sides by signs and portsnts
and omens. At the very threshold OF life
we are told that to be born with q caul Is
lucky. Readers of David Coppertield'
will remember that he was born with a
caul. A child born Christmas day will be
able to see spirits, and an old rhyme runs:
Born on a Sunday. a gentleman;
Born on a Monday, fair in face:
Born on Il Tuesday, full of grace;
Born OH a Wednesday, syur and gruln:
Born on a Thursday, welcome home;
Born on a Friday, free in giving
Born on a Saturday, work hand for your living.
Children with much down on their arms
or hands are bound 10 be rich, while q
child that does not cry at baptism is too
good TO live. If several children are hap
TIED together, and the girls are taken to
the font before the boys, the boys will
have no boards when they are men. IL a
child's tinger-nails are cut before it is a
year old it will live to be q thief. IL your
cheek burns somebody is talking scandal
about you. II you hear q singing in your
right tar somebody is p~raising you, while
if it is in your left ear somebody is abus-
ing you. You can punish this evil speaker
by biting your little finger sharply. In
so doing you bite his evil tongue. Topick
up a pin with its head toward you, or find
an old horseshoe or a four-leaf clover, will
surely bring you good luck. Indeed, to
see a pin AZ you pass along may prove a
very serious matter indeed, according to
the old rhyme:
See a pin and pick IL up,
All the day you'll have good luck;
See a pin and let IL lie,
All the day you'll have to cry.
But how to pick it up is all important.
Most authorities say you must take it by
the head or your luck will be bad,
whilst others maintain You must take il
H., A. ,~n;nt lkuvhn pha1I 1ani1a tuhan
doctors disagree2" The celebrated Thad
Stevens always maintained, with the great
ability that characterized that statesman,
that you must take it up point first. As
he was q persistent wOoer Of the tickle god
dess he had undoubtedly given the sub
ject q careful study. To put on any
garment particularly a sock or stock
ing, wrong side out is an iniallible
prognostic that some piece of good
fortune is about to happen to
the careless or slovenly person 40 arraying
himself. The appearance Of a white speck
on a finger nail il q sure indication that
you are about to receive a gift, and if the
palm Of your right hand itcbes it Is a
pleasant notification Of the same kind.
Brutus and Cassius had a tremendous
quarrel because Brutus very frankly charg-
ed Cassius with having an Etching
palm" If the latter had only stopped q
moment to consider that it was oily a
roundabout way Of saying he was about to
receive II Christmas gift he might not have
gotten into such q towering rage and one
of Mr.. Barrett's beat parts would have
been spoiled.
1t is not pleasant to stumble up stairs,
but if you do it Is some consolation to
know that you will not only have good
luck yourself, but that a wedding will
take place in the house inside n year. A
maiden who has bad luck at cards will 10
sure to hsue a good husband, and will play
the game of life successfully. Happy
the bride the sun shines on" is a saying
so old that people really believe it, the
record Of the divorce courts 10 the con-
trary Notwithstanding. For it can
not be true that the divorces
we're all married in rainy weather.
Among the most potent instrumental
ties by which fate is propitiated shoe
leather holds q time-honored and prom
inent place. The custom of throwing an
old shoe after a departing friend or a new
ly married couple is so old that 1t IL only
mentioned here TO remind intending throw
ers that the shoe should belong to the
left foot-tbere is no virtue in the other.
Whether the shoe should be thrown
so az to hit the departing friend
is again q question concerning
which the old women differ. Some
maintain that the recipient should be
hit, and the harder he is hit the
greater will be Misfortune; while Others
quite as plausibly maintain that if the
person is hit the journey will he a disast-
rous one, probably ending in death. How
ever, whichever way it is, any had or
even fatal results may he avoided by the
traveller pecketipg q piece of coal, and as
black diamonds are plentiful there ought
Il he No difficulty in bringing about a sat
is'actory result. Indeed, there are an
abundance of ways by which Chances
freakish daughter may b. oom-
PEELED to do us service. Whit
sunday has Just passed for this
year, but il you were thought
ful or wealthy enough to put on something
new that day fortune will attend Won the